Best craft breweries in London

The number of breweries in the UK has reached the highest number since the 1930s, with more than 1,424 breweries in total, and opening up at a rate of 3 every week. The capital saw a 24% rise in new brewers last year, and its craft beer scene continues to thrive.

There are so many good breweries in London so it would be impossible to visit and include all of them. Partizan, 40 Ft, Weird Beard, Old Kent Road, Wild Card, Brockley, Mondo and UBrew should probably be on this list, just to name a few. However; we have made our selection, and these are the ones:

10. Five Points

One of many breweries built and ran underneath railway arches. This time in Hackney, East London, next to Hackney Downs Station. The continuous expansion of this trendy area in London seems to fit very well with the brewery’s own plans as an independent company. They are gaining more attention from craft beer fans, and their bottles can be found in most off-licences around the area.

The Five Points (source: http://fivepointsbrewing.co.uk/)

On the fourth Saturday of every month, they run “Saturday Sessions” at Mason & Company in Hackney Wick, which is a full tutored beer tasting, including 5 tasters (1/3 pints of each beer) and discount on brunch and beer. They also hold a brewery tour on the second Saturday of every month. They are not open regularly on weekends as other breweries, but they hold a summer tap in July and August.

They show a clear commitment to the local community which is very important. They assist local charities and community projects, they run an apprenticeship scheme for 18-24-year-olds and the electricity used in the brewhouse comes from 100% renewable source.

9. Redchurch

Only 10 minutes away from Bethnal Green station, it’s conveniently located on the first floor above the brewery. The room is quite small but cosy. There is a dartboard, a few tables and chairs, and a DJ playing vinyls on weekends. There is also a 45-minute brewery tour, which includes samples as well.

They tap room offers 2/3 and half pints. They use well-known names from East London to name the beers, such as Brick Lane Lager and Shoreditch Blonde.

Redchurch (source: beatifullytravelled.com)

Recommendation:

Great Eastern: a 7% ABV IPA, strong and tasty.

Old Ford Export: stout with an aroma of coffee, chocolate and light vanilla.

8. Gipsy Hill

Located just next to Crystal Palace, they have a strong presence all over London, as you can easily find their beers in off-licenses and bottle shops. Finding them on tap is not that easy unless you head south. They focus on “full flavoured, medium strength beer, so you can keep the conversation going”, and their core range is under 5% ABV. Their artwork (by Marcus Reed) is simple, hip and effective.

The brewery’s taproom is quite small at the moment, as they are working on an expansion. No seats nor tables inside, and only a couple of improvised seats outside. They are supposed to have 6 beers on tap, although they had only 2 when we were there (as you can see in the picture below). We could get some bottles, but they were not showing all of them so we had to ask. Hopefully, the expansion will address all these issues.

They run an interesting “Locals Scheme“, so if live within one mile of the brewery you get 15 percent off everything (once you signup and get a keyring).

Gipsy Hill Brewery

It is not that easy to get there if you live in Central or North London. However; if you manage to get to Brixton station, you can then take bus number 3 to arrive at Gipsy Hill stop in 30 minutes.

7. Camden Town

Probably the biggest one on the list. Since the first brewed batch on 2010, they have gone from strength to strength. His founder insists that “big can also be beautiful”, in an attempt to maintain its craftiness spirit. He thinks craft beer is about attitude and ingredients rather than size.

Camden Town (source: imbibe.com)

These opinions are aligned to their new £30 million facilities, the largest investment in London brewing for 30 years. The company has accepted a take over from the global drinks giant AB InBev. But it is hard to believe that it is going to have the same appeal to hipsters and craft beer lovers.

Nonetheless, their recently refurbished tank bar under Camden’s railway arches is worth a visit. Cool area with a good choice of beers, some nibbles and snacks, and a Thai food truck in the outside area. It is also a good place to buy some can packs.

6. Crate

They may not have the best beers on this list, but they do have the best place. Queen’s Yard on one side, and the Regents Canal on the other. Great DJs playing all day long (on weekends), loads of friendly staff, laid back atmosphere and delicious pizzas.

It can get extremely busy (and noisy) on Saturdays, so better to be prepared for waiting. The food can take more than an hour, and you will probably need to wait for a seat as well. They will give you an orange cube with a number and someone will try to find you when your pizza is ready.

Crate’s busy backyard by the canal

Their pizzas are thin, crispy and tasty. I really liked the one with prosciutto and rocket, and the one with sweet potatoes and walnuts.

They are also located on the increasingly busy Queen’s Yard (10 metres away from Crate), where they offer excellent beer and food in a typical East London vibe. There is plenty of seating on long benches, including an outside area, in former industrial premises. They serve 10 different beers straight from 10 different tanks, and you can even buy a pitcher/jar to share.

Recommendation:

American Pale XX: excellent Pale with some classic US hops such as Centennial, Cascade, Columbus and Citra.

Pils: simple is better. A traditional pilsner with character.

Chocolate Stout: for chocolate fans, or those looking for originality.

4. Hammerton

Located in the heart of Islington, between Highbury & Islington and Caledonian Road & Barnsbury overground stations, Hammerton is a local brewery which is gaining popularity slowly but steady.

They offer guided tours on Fridays and Saturdays, which are for up to 20 people and include a taste of each of the beers. The tap room is open to the public the last weekend of every month. It is a nice casual space, with wooden tables inside and outside, a foosball table, and the smell of fermentation and yeast in the air. Very pleasant and relaxed.

They normally offer food as well. It is a modest and limited menu but more than enough to partner the beer. His chef Fabio provides quite original dishes, most of the times with Latin American roots, from countries such as Argentina and Peru. They seem to have a special bond with the latter, as the Peruvian restaurant Ceviche has a few of their beers in the menu, plus one called “Somos Libres” which it seems to be exclusively produced for them.

Hammerton Brewery

On the historical side, the original brewery opened in 1868 but was demolished by the late 1950s. A few years later, in 2014, a member of the same family (Hammerton) resurrected the name and brought back the brewery to Islington.

Lastly but not least, they have taken over a pub on Holloway Road, in former premises of the Wig and Gown. It’s called House of Hammerton, and they offer over 20 beers on tap -including all of theirs- and plenty of bottles as well. And it is only 700 metres away from the brewery.

Recommendation:

N7 is their first and best beer, a pale ale full of New Zealand and US hops.

3. Beavertown

Located in the Tottenham area, a few minutes away from Tottenham Hale station, Beavertown is really a hit in the UK and it is somehow dominating the craft beer scene in London. Original and fantastic artwork (by artist Nick Dwyer), beer names and cans, their marketing strategy seems to be working very well. Its founder happens to be the son of Robert Plant (Led Zeppelin), which could have contributed to its success as well.

There is a spacious area just outside the brewery, with a few tables and benches, along with a couple of pop-up food stalls. There is also a “fast” alternative bar where you can buy cold cans, and avoid the long queue at the main bar. In a busy Saturday with good weather, you can easily need to wait 20 minutes to get to the tap bar. It is also hard to find a table/seat, but there is plenty of space to sit on the floor, as you can see in the picture below.

Beavertown Brewery

They organise a massive beer festival called Beavertown Extravaganza, where more than 60 of the worlds great brewers exhibit their products. Each brewery serves 2 taps of beer, rotating those taps with different beers over the two days. This event gets sold out quite quickly so better to follow the announcements.

2. The Kernel

Founded in 2009 and part of the Bermondsey Beer Mile, it is now a well-established brewery with a good presence along the UK. As they defined themselves on the website: “Upfront hops, lingering bitterness, warming alcohols, bodies of malt. Lengths and depths of flavour.”

They are only open as a bottle shop on Saturdays from 9am to 2pm. They stopped serving beer directly to customers some time ago because it was getting too crowded (“We cannot satisfactorily accommodate the volume of people who wish to come down on a Saturday”). This decision attracted the criticism of beer enthusiasts, which did not affect its popularity at all.

The Kernel

Their beers are becoming quite trendy at the moment. The main advantage of this is that they can be found in a lot of small shops/off-license. The downside is that the prices are normally higher than the rest. They can easily charge £3 for a bottle of IPA. Some pubs have it on draught as a guest beer. Mason and Company (Hackney Wick) is one of them, but the last time we were there it was ridiculously expensive, we paid £7 a pint. This shows one of the tricks that some pubs are doing. They normally sell half and 2/3 pints, so when you order a full pint they charge extra.

1. Brew By Numbers

Located on the Bermondsey Beer Mile as well (metres away from The Kernel), they are distinctive because of their carefully selected ingredients and very exotic and original hops. “BBNo is an enterprise in ongoing and extensive research, testing, tasting, tweaking and experimentation”.

In other words, amazing choice of beers of various strength’s and style’s, friendly service and great atmosphere with a nice mix of people. It can get crowded on sunny days, and you may need to queue outside for a place, but it is never too long.

Their speciality is Saison, and they are really innovators on that matter. Saison is “is a pale ale that is generally around 7% ABV, highly carbonated, fruity, spicy, and often bottle conditioned” [Wikipedia].

They also charge the glasses in advance (£3), so do not forget to return them before you leave. Some recommendations:

01|01 Saison Citra. One of their first beers, and probably the most acclaimed.

What is the meaning of those numbers? The first one indicates the beer type/style (i.e. 05| for IPA) and the second the recipe (i.e. |11 Citra and Mosaic, |14 Citra Summit). You can find more combinations here.

They open Fridays 6-10pm and Saturdays 11am to 8pm. You can buy small and large bottles to take away.